They identify the passengers of the submersible that disappeared in the Atlantic on an expedition to the 'Titanic'

Authorities, companies and families have identified on Tuesday the five people who were traveling aboard the OceanGate Expeditions company submersible that disappeared on Sunday during a dive to approach the remains of the 'Titanic', located off the Atlantic coast of Canada.

The family itself has confirmed in a statement the presence on board of the tycoon of Pakistani origin Shahzada Dawood, resident in the United Kingdom, and his son, Suleman. "We ask everyone to pray for their well-being while respecting the privacy of the family at this time," reads the note, collected by CNN.

Also on board would be British businessman Hamish Harding, president of the Action Aviation company, and French adventurer Paul-Henry Nargeolet, who appears opposite Harding in a recent Facebook post, according to the BBC. The list is reportedly completed by OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush.

The UK Foreign Office is already in contact with Harding's family and "ready to provide any possible further assistance", according to a Downing Street spokesman. The office of the British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, has given its support to the affected families and has appreciated the work of the emergency personnel who participate in the tracking efforts.

Instead, the French Foreign Ministry has clarified that it cannot yet "confirm" the presence of Nargeolet in the submarine that disappeared on Sunday. "We are following the events with the utmost attention and we are in contact with the competent authorities," said a diplomatic spokeswoman.

The submersible disappeared some 700 kilometers off the Newfoundland coast, with no clues to its whereabouts at the moment. She lost contact with the surface less than two hours after starting the dive and experts estimate that the oxygen on board can last up to 96 hours, in the best of the scenarios raised in the last few hours.

The operation is carried out by surface and also from the air, with two C-130 helicopters from the United States.

The luxury liner 'Titanic' is located about 600 kilometers off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada, at a depth of 3,800 meters below the sea surface. Its shipwreck occurred in 1912 and resulted in more than 1,500 deaths, although the remains of the wreck were not located until 1985.